..OHN UO! 'f SOVH OAllO lA ftOYILC!lo1' M ...soufll AMYKf.OIUCttAll. M"ll.--l$0r4 'l:OCJllUZ TEXAS RClfAlllD&.uM&t111Al. ~·AC'ICU'I' OUASQCk t..£'1M$1CA ~J S(l(Ati H1'.\VJI ~EMY MOl\AN KA..'lrS.U fDWARO MlMtV MASSAC.-J5fTI'S I>'... $UUNA._ ALA.SKA TOM l.CALL ,_f\VMEXJCO tinitrd ~tatcs ~cna tr COft't CAAOPl.tP (.OU)fU.OO GNr't P£TCllS MK>t'C.Af.i MAlllSHA 8'.MX.,,-.. 11 " .., ~S$f f 1/tt..1MV llALCM-'t'lii \i\'ISCD'4r. 52 SHE.u..!Y MOOllfC-"'TO\".~\:ltG " " .ll TAUMvOUC«:'," . ~ Ujto,(1$ COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE. SCIENCE, Al:Q W U1'AN 0 ._. 1!.STEJt ..-O'llfA!'U AND TRANSPORTATION ~ o ~so..., ,, " " " , J.~ T(~ S "llUM AlllllO~ TOOOVOO'<l... . " ~ JACICV llOS£'- N!V~ -.a !CDT'" f1.0MJA WASHINGTON, DC 2051~ 1 25 .Dti" " Kl..tST SlAlf O!l'l'CT°' WEBSITE: http://commerce.senate.gov 0.WOS11i1C'1.AMJ DE..:>CRATIC SlAFFDR!CTOlll January 27, 2020 The Honorable Ajit Pai Chairman Federal Communications Commission 445 12" h Street SW Washington, DC 20554 Dear Chairman Pai: Last year, Congress enacted the Television Viewer Protection Act of2019 ("TVPA") as part of H.R. 1865, the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of2020. The TVPA makes pennanent the requirement that broadcast stations and multichannel video programming distributors ("MVPDs") negotiate retransmission consent with one another in good faith. It also directs the Federal Communications Commission to issue new rules to extend good faith requirements to cover negotiations between large station groups and qualified MVPD buying groups. The TVPA's extension of good faith requirements to negotiations between large station groups and qualified MVPD buying groups is intended to facilitate efficient negotiations between small cable system operators and large broadcast station groups. This may help consumers maintain access to broadcast television programming from their cable provider without disruption. It may also help reduce the cost of television programming for consumers. The next round of retransmission consent negotiations will commence as early as the second half of this year. It is important that the rights and responsibilities set forth in the TVPA apply to large station groups and qualified MVPD buying groups in Mississippi and around the country throughout this process. I encourage the Commission to act expeditiously to implement the new rules under the TVPA to protect consumers and promote competition and consumer choice in the video marketplace. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Sincerely, o rF . ~i~~